On second thought, maybe sound is not the future.

Playing around with podcasts has been hard to do without annoying my audio-sensitive co-workers, but I've managed. However, I find I have a larger obstacle. For the same reasons I can't listen to talk radio, podcasting doesn't suit me. I can't stay focused on what's being said but I can't focus on anything else, either. Arg!
To prove I tried I'll present some remarks. I found PodcastAlley the most user friendly, although I wish it offered a location search. I did make use of Podcast.net's location search and discovered that Vancouver produces a lot of religious podcasts. Hmm...
I also wish the search engines gave the option of sorting results by date (as in the most recently updated feed). It only seems worthwhile to subscribe to feeds that are alive and productive, but most of my search results were long dead ones.
In terms of library related podcasting, SirsiDynix had many interesting topics, but they tended to be lengthy. LibVibe presents weekly, concise, worldwide library news (they made the bloglines cut). Being in the know about worldwide library news makes me feel like I'm part of an elite community. Because really, who else cares?

Sound is the Future

There were enough cool links in this assignment to keep me busy for hours. I'll just dive in! I like the control last.fm gives me to browse and discover new artists (like the long list of bands I have to check out courtesy of the Icelandic Music Scene group), but I enjoy the surprise of Pandora. I didn't get too far into imeem because it relies more heavily on user-loaded content than I'm interested in.
I don't know that I understand the informational or library-related implications of sites like these, sites that combine music and social networking. I get that familiarity with them is useful, that they're 2.0, and fun! But I don't know how they might be used in a library setting or if their access should be a priority. At least not without a good set of headphones. But maybe access to sites like these will make up for our lack of a music collection? "No, we don't have the latest Yanni, but you might be able to download it from last.fm, or Amazon for that matter." As an aside, I really hope the CD isn't dead because I am a respecter of cool packaging. The art, the band photo, the hidden content: it's all part of my image of the musician.
I can see how useful a site like the sound effects archive is, even in a library setting though. We do occasionally get asked if we carry CDs in this vein, and a website might appeal more to some than placing a hold on our meager offerings. The same goes for the Internet Archive's radio plays, poetry read by the poet, and Presidential speeches, just to name a few.
It seems like a no-brainer that libraries should have auditory offerings beyond books on tape, but traditionally libraries have been quiet places. Maybe that tradition has stymied growth in the area of aural information.